Max Verstappen's team and Red Bull top management had multiple meetings days prior to Christian Horner's firing: Reports

Red Bull has shockingly fired Christian Horner from the helm of the squad as Max Verstappen's 2025 championship bid seems to dwindle under the McLaren winds. While the team has not released the reason why the Briton would be leaving the outfit, according to reports, a horde of meetings were held between Verstappen and the senior figures at Red Bull GmbH before ultimately sacking the 51-year-old.

Verstappen made his debut at Red Bull under the reign of Horner. The Dutchman soon emerged to be a force to be reckoned with in the F1 field over the past few years, as he claimed four consecutive Drivers' titles.

Though Verstappen had a successful 2024 campaign on paper, the team had a difficult time handling the chaos going on internally, as its supremo faced serious allegations, which might have weakened his position within the team. While he was acquitted, the rifts had formed within Milton Keynes, and a mass exodus soon happened from the squad.

This coincided with the team losing ground in the pecking order as McLaren emerged as the new leader. With a tarred 2025 campaign, the team seemed futile under Horner's leadership, which led to a myriad of meetings being held between Max Verstappen's camp and Oliver Mintzlaff over the past two race weekends, as some insiders have informed ESPN.

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Would Max Verstappen stay at Red Bull post-Christian Horner's axing?

Max Verstappen at the 2025 F1 British Grand Prix - Source: Getty

Max Verstappen's camp had multiple run-ins with Christian Horner last year during the investigations on the latter's conduct. While the team tried to present its unity on paper, it seemed fragmented in internal matters.

Horner was earlier assertive of the Dutchman's future at Red Bull just a few days prior to his exit, as he said, via Formula 1:

"Everybody’s very clear on where we’re at. Max has been with Red Bull since the very start of his career, all of his success has come in Red Bull Racing cars, and he’s been a big part of our team and he has a great deal of faith in the team and the people around him.

"He’s made it quite clear that he would like to finish his career in a Red Bull car, from start to finish – I think that’s quite special and unique for him. That’s what we’re focused on, just ignoring the noise and focusing on the areas where we know we need to improve and how to do that."

However, Adrian Newey and Jonathan Wheatley's departure in the past 12 months, alongside Mercedes' open bids to lure away the Dutchman from Milton Keynes, could mean a premature end to Max Verstappen's stint at Red Bull. This could translate into F1's one of the most dominant teams of the 21st century, dismantling into a former version of itself.